In this short film from University of Oxford, experts and a mother whose child was disabled by MenB infection (=meningococcal B disease) talk about the MenB (meningitis B) vaccine.

What is Meningococcal disease?

Meningococcal disease is a life-threatening infection. This is a term used to describe two major illnesses – meningitis (inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain) and septicaemia (blood poisoning).

There are five main groups of meningococcal bacteria that commonly cause disease; A, B, C, W and Y. Group B (MenB) is responsible for about 90% of meningococcal infections in the UK. In the past 20 years in the UK, between 500 and 1,700 people every year, mainly babies and young children, have suffered from MenB disease, with around 1 in 10 dying from the infection (see below chart) . Many of those who survive suffer terrible permanent disability, such as amputation, brain damage and epilepsy.

What is the MenB vaccine?

Meningitis and septicaemia caused by meningococcal group B bacteria can affect people of any age, but is most common in babies and young children. MenB vaccine was added to the NHS childhood immunisation programme in 1st September 2015. This new programme made England the first country in the world to offer a national and publicly funded MenB vaccination programme.

Those born before 1 May 2015 are not eligible to receive the MenB vaccine as part of the routine immunisation schedule on the NHS.

Parents whose children are not eligible to receive this vaccine as part of the NHS national programme, can get their child to be immunised with the MenB vaccine privately.

Men B vaccine is given to individuals from 2 months of age and older. There are no data on the use of this vaccine in adults above 50 years of age.

The MenACWY vaccine was introduced in response to an increase in cases of invasive MenW disease in August 2015 as part of NHS routine immunisation schedule for everyone aged 14-18 years of age and first year university students under the age of 25.

Transmission of MenW has been seen across all age groups and across all regions in England indicating that the strain is now endemic.

The highest rates of carriage were observed in the adolescent population with evidence of sustained transmission, particularly within students attending universities.

Those at highest risk of complications are young children. For the first time in the past decade, MenW related deaths have occurred in this age group.

NHS replaced the MenC vaccine routinely administered around 14 years with MenACWY vaccine in 2015. This is an outbreak control measure and will prevent carriage and transmission within the adolescent population, thus ensuring protection against MenW to all other age groups through herd immunity.

On the NHS, MenC/Hib (combined) vaccine is now given at 1 year of age and MenACWY vaccine at 14 years of age as well as to individuals 18 to 25 years of age who have not received MenACWY or no MenC vaccines before.

MenACWY vaccine can be given privately to children from 6 weeks of age for parents who want more comprehensive protection against meningitis for their babies at the earliest possible age.

In December 2016, one of the two MenACWY vaccines available in the UK approved to expand its age indication from “12 months of age and over” to “6 weeks of age and over”. This was an EU-wide approval based upon results from a study in which the effectiveness and safety of MenACWY vaccine was evaluated in over 1,000 healthy infants from six weeks of age. Based on clinical evidence, this vaccine was approved for administration in infants as a two dose primary series, with the first dose given from six weeks of age and with an interval of two months between doses, followed by a booster dose at 12 months.

Does MenB vaccine provide cross protection against other meningococcal capsular groups, such as Men A, C, W and Y?

According to the latest guidance from Public Health England, studies to demonstrate protection from the MenB vaccine against other capsular strains remain on-going. Thus individuals requiring protection against ACWY should receive the ACWY vaccine and should not assume to be protected against these capsular groups even if they have received a complete course of MenB Vaccine.

Can the MenB or MenACWY vaccines actually cause meningitis?

No, these vaccines cannot cause meningitis.

Can the MenB vaccine be given at the same time as other vaccines?

Yes, MenB vaccine can be given at the same time, or at any time before or after, as any other vaccines including MenACWY and chickenpox.

Can the MenACWY vaccine be given at the same time as other vaccines?

Whenever possible, MenACWY and a tetanus containing vaccine should be co-administered or MenACWY vaccine should be administered at least one month before the tetanus containing vaccine. Otherwise, MenACWY vaccine can be given at the same time, or at any time before or after, as any other vaccines.